A transaction card assembly may include a transaction card and an auxiliary portion attached to the transaction card. The transaction card and the auxiliary portion may be formed to have a shaped edge that conforms with a trademark, a representation of a product, or other information printed or otherwise formed on the assembly. The auxiliary portion may be a functional item, such as a shoe horn or a luggage tag.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
1. A transaction card assembly comprising: a sheet having a transaction card portion and an auxiliary portion, the transaction card portion separated from the auxiliary portion by a line of weakness so that the transaction card portion is separable from the auxiliary portion by hand and without the use of tools, the transaction card portion being usable as a transaction card by an issuee of the card in a transaction; at least one of the transaction card portion and the auxiliary portion having a shaped edge that conforms to at least a portion of a shape of a trademark carried on the transaction card portion or auxiliary portion.
2. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the shaped edge includes at least a portion of the line of weakness.
3. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the shaped edge is formed to provide a recognizable impression of the trademark.
4. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the trademark includes a logo or text that is printed on the transaction card portion.
5. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the trademark includes a logo or text that is printed on the auxiliary portion.
6. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the trademark includes a logo or text that is printed so the trademark extends across the line of weakness.
7. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the transaction card portion is one of a gift card, a prepaid phone card, a frequent shopper card, a loyalty card and a membership card and the trademark is a trademark used by an issuer of the card.
8. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the trademark is a common law trademark.
9. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the transaction card portion includes one of a barcode and an encoded magnetic strip.
10. A transaction card assembly comprising: a sheet having a transaction card portion and an auxiliary portion, the transaction card portion separated from the auxiliary portion by a line of weakness so that the transaction card portion is separable from the auxiliary portion by hand and without the use of tools, the transaction card portion being usable as a transaction card by an issuee of the card in a transaction; at least one of the transaction card portion and the auxiliary portion having a shaped edge that conforms to at least a portion of a shape of a representation of a product carried on the transaction card portion or auxiliary portion.
11. The assembly of claim 10 , wherein the product is a product that is offered for sale by an issuer of the transaction card portion.
12. The assembly of claim 10 , wherein the shaped edge includes at least a portion of the line of weakness.
13. The assembly of claim 12 , wherein the shaped edge is entirely formed by the line of weakness.
14. The assembly of claim 10 , wherein the transaction card portion is one of a gift card, a prepaid phone card, a frequent shopper card, a loyalty card and a membership card.
15. The assembly of claim 10 , wherein the printed representation of the product extends across the line of weakness.
Cooperative Patent Classification codes for this invention. Click any code to explore related patents in that topic.
March 30, 2006
January 29, 2008
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